Your breath is a bit bad

Jiang Ran looked at the message Wang Zhenguo had sent to his phone screen and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

Deep Realm Inspection Team?

How could anyone come up with a name like that?

However, the fact that Wang Zhenguo had specifically sent a message to warn him suggested that this organization was likely not simple.

Jiang Ran's fingers tapped rapidly on the screen: "What does this inspection team do?"

A few seconds later, Wang Zhenguo's reply popped up: "A special agency newly established by the Federation with high authority, specifically responsible for the deep exploration of the Abyssal Void.

It is said that they have recruited many registered Transcendents, and their equipment and resources are top-tier."

Seeing this, Jiang Ran's eyes flickered.

He recalled the two people from this morning who claimed to be from the Cultural Relics Bureau.

After pondering for a moment, he replied: "You contact them on my behalf; we'll talk inside the Abyssal Void."

Wang Zhenguo quickly replied with a single word: "Okay."

Jiang Ran put away his phone and hailed a taxi to go home.

Eleven-thirty at night.

Jiang Ran sat cross-legged in the center of the living room, his consciousness sinking into his Profession Panel.

[Basic Profession Skill: Blood-Qi Circulation Method (Incomplete) Lv.1 (78/100)]

[Ultimate: Lotus Brilliance Lv.1 (0/100)]

Jiang Ran did not hesitate.

He first invested 1 point into the Blood-Qi Circulation Method.

Hum...

The blood-qi within his body instantly boiled.

A faint jade-like luster appeared on the surface of his skin, and a subtle tingling sensation came from the muscles and bones beneath, as if they were being repeatedly tempered.

[Blood-Qi Circulation Method (Incomplete) Lv.1 → Lv.2]

When the notification that the upgrade was complete appeared, Jiang Ran slowly opened his eyes. He hadn't expected that strengthening the Blood-Qi Circulation Method would also slightly increase the blood-qi within his body.

Afterward, Jiang Ran took out a Blue Spirit Crystal and attempted to cultivate again.

Only ten-plus minutes later, he opened his eyes once more.

His eyes were filled with surprise.

The 2nd-level Blood-Qi Circulation Method alone absorbed spirit crystals 30% faster than before.

If he could prepare cultivation techniques and profession points in advance every time, then in terms of cultivation speed, he would absolutely be among the tiny fraction at the very pinnacle of the pyramid.

Subsequently, Jiang Ran invested the remaining 3 profession points into his finishing move.

The moment the points were invested...

An indescribable palpitation surged from the depths of his soul.

His consciousness seemed to be pulled into a boundless, dark void.

In the center of the void, a blood-colored lotus bud, waiting to bloom, floated silently.

The lotus rotated slowly, and with every rotation, countless fine golden runes emerged from the petals.

When Jiang Ran's gaze focused on the lotus, those golden runes suddenly lit up, transforming into a torrent of information that surged into the depths of his consciousness.

[Ultimate: Lotus Brilliance Lv.1 → Lv.3 (0/300)]

[Uses all blood-qi as a catalyst to condense a lotus phantom at the fist; requires charging before use.]

Jiang Ran pulled himself out of that profound state and returned to reality.

He looked down at his right hand.

With a slight movement of his will...

Hum...

Crimson blood-qi smoke rose from his palm and rapidly condensed.

In just half a breath, a fist-sized, blood-colored lotus phantom, waiting to bloom, appeared.

It was already hovering an inch above his palm.

Lotus Brilliance rotated slowly, with golden runes faintly flowing across its petals.

With a flick of his mind, he dispersed his life force.

The phantom of Lotus Brilliance vanished without a sound.

"The charge time... I can only condense a prototype in half a breath; to make it fully bloom, it would take two or three seconds." Jiang Ran was lost in thought. "But the power..."

He recalled that feeling of heart-palpitating dread from just a moment ago.

Even as a mere prototype, the power of this Lotus Brilliance already far exceeded the peak state of Buddha's Wrathful Vajra.

If it were to fully bloom...

A glimmer of anticipation flashed in Jiang Ran's eyes.

The next morning.

Jiang Ran arrived at school on time and walked into the classroom of Grade 2 Class 15.

The order in the classroom today was even better than before.

Although those few troublemakers in the back row were still not very attentive, at least they weren't causing disturbances anymore, merely sleeping on their desks.

As for the other students, especially those in the middle and front rows, their engagement in the lesson was noticeably higher.

[Chinese Experience +4]

[Chinese Experience +3]

[Chinese Experience +5]

The notifications on the panel kept jumping.

By the end of the class, his Chinese skill experience had grown by a full 68 points, over a dozen more than yesterday.

[Chinese Lv.8 (583/800)]

At this rate, he would be able to level up in two or three days at most.

Jiang Ran packed up his lesson plans, preparing to leave the classroom.

As his gaze swept over the back row, he suddenly paused.

Li Hao was not sleeping.

The kid was keeping his head down, focused intently on a book inside his desk compartment.

Jiang Ran walked over calmly and stood quietly behind Li Hao.

Spread out on the desk was a book on human anatomy.

Li Hao was so engrossed that he didn't even notice Jiang Ran standing behind him.

"Figured it out?"

Jiang Ran spoke suddenly, his voice calm.

"Holy crap."

Li Hao jumped in fright, nearly dropping the book on the floor.

He scrambled to shove the book back into his desk, and upon turning around to see it was Jiang Ran, he let out a sigh of relief, an embarrassed look appearing on his face. "T-Teacher Jiang..."

Watching him like this, Jiang Ran found it somewhat amusing.

Last time in the counseling office, this kid had sworn up and down that he would never study medicine.

Yet here he was, secretly reading anatomy and so absorbed in it.

"Teacher Jiang, that..." Li Hao scratched his head, explaining hesitantly, "Sometimes... things like this, it's not something you can decide for yourself, you know..."

Jiang Ran was stunned for a moment, then shook his head with a light laugh.

He patted Li Hao on the shoulder, his tone gentle.

"A person's thoughts are bound to change; that's perfectly normal.

What matters is whether the choice you're making now is something you truly want to do."

Li Hao stared blankly at Jiang Ran, opening his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he just nodded heavily.

"Thank you, Teacher Jiang," he said in a low voice.

Jiang Ran smiled, said nothing more, and turned to leave the classroom.

The time that followed passed in a routine manner.

In the afternoon at the Shooting Club, Li Xintong's interception success rate... skyrocketed, and Jiang Ran had to use his full strength just to barely manage a win.

Jiang Ran guessed that a divine ability must have been used.

Because the experience points jumping on the panel verified this.

[Compound Bow Shooting experience +13]

[Moving Target Shooting experience +15]

[Prediction skill experience +10]

At the same time, he successfully leveled Moving Target Shooting to level 5, gaining 2 Profession points.

However, when Li Xintong saw the surging power on Jiang Ran, there wasn't the slightest hint of surprise in her eyes.

Clearly, she had also guessed that Jiang Ran had entered the Abyssal Void long ago.

The two of them, much like Old Chen, shared a tacit understanding.

As for Old Chen, his use of divine abilities was clearly much more proficient than yesterday.

At the very least, his exertion of force was no longer so stiff, and the circulation of his blood energy during defense was much smoother.

Of course, in front of Jiang Ran, it still wasn't enough to look at.

However, Jiang Ran could feel that Old Chen's ability to withstand hits was improving at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Finally, there was Lin Xiaorou's tutoring.

It was a bit of a pity.

The girl had asked for leave tonight.

He hadn't been able to fleece any experience from her.

But... Jiang Ran hadn't done nothing at all.

It was past eleven o'clock at night.

Jiang Ran sat at his desk.

He rubbed his temples and closed the ancient book he had borrowed from Li Baishi.

He had read the Classic of Mountains and Seas before, but he had always treated it as a collection of myths and had never studied it so seriously.

Now that he had truly delved into it.

He realized that the content within far exceeded his imagination.

The countries recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas alone numbered over a hundred.

And the people of these countries had bizarre and strange appearances.

It was hard to imagine what kind of peculiar abilities these Ancestral People possessed.

After all, to be able to survive in the mouths of so many Exotic Beasts...

They couldn't possibly be ordinary people.

Fortunately, it wasn't completely without clues.

At least the people of the Kingdom of Hairy People could speak modern language, which meant they were capable of communication.

Jiang Ran glanced at the time.

23:58.

Two minutes left.

He put away the ancient book, walked to the center of the bedroom, stood still, and adjusted his breathing.

The hands of the clock slid silently toward midnight.

The sense of trance arrived right on schedule.

When Jiang Ran opened his eyes again.

He had returned to the living room of that old residential building in the Abyssal Void.

Outside the window, the night was deep, and the sporadic lights of the Safe Zone flickered in the distance.

Jiang Ran did not delay; he immediately walked to the window, lifted a corner of the curtain, and looked toward the building the two people had entered last night.

The window on the third floor was glowing with a faint light at this moment.

Through the gap in the curtains, he could see two figures moving inside.

Jiang Ran waited patiently.

About five minutes later, the door opened.

Two men walked out one after the other; they were exactly the same two from last night.

Both men were carrying bags and holding flashlights, looking as if they were about to head out.

Seeing this, Jiang Ran immediately left the room and followed them.

Entering the street.

The two men walked together toward the outskirts of the Safe Zone, whispering to each other as they went.

Jiang Ran trailed them from a distance.

He used the street-side buildings to conceal his figure.

"That looks like the home of some famous web novelist; there must be plenty of good stuff inside," Hairy Person said.

The man let out a laugh, "Fine, let's go try our luck, but we have to be careful. There are quite a few monsters in that area."

"What's there to be afraid of? There are two of us; if things get dangerous, we'll just run..."

The two talked as they walked, quickly crossing the perimeter of the Safe Zone and entering the outer region.

Jiang Ran followed far behind them.

Taking cover under the shroud of night, the pair skillfully navigated the streets on the edge of the Safe Zone, soon arriving before a partially collapsed detached villa.

"This is it."

The normal man pointed at the pitch-black doorway, lowering his voice.

The two crept forward, one after the other.

Before entering, the man complained casually, "Old Zhang, why didn't you get a SIM card before we headed out? Didn't we agree you'd add me on WeChat?"

Old Zhang patted him on the shoulder, his voice filled with a smile, "Ahem, it just slipped my mind. Next time for sure, definitely next time."

The interior of the villa was in shambles, and the two shone their flashlights around.

They headed straight toward the entrance of the basement.

No sooner had they stepped into the darkness than the sounds of roaring and fighting erupted from within.

Clearly, they had encountered the monster lurking inside.

The noise quickly died down.

Before long, the sound of the normal man's breathless, excited voice drifted up from below: "Got it! It's a Spirit Crystal!"

Listening, Jiang Ran walked down without a sound.

The basement was thick with the stench of blood.

He saw the normal man with his back to the entrance, stooped over as he dug a Spirit Crystal from the corpse of a Monkey-Faced Scaled Beast, his face beaming with joy.

Old Zhang, standing behind him, was smiling along...

Except, as he smiled, he opened his mouth.

His lips stretched into a shape that was entirely inhuman, his eyes fixed greedily on the man's nape.

Viscous saliva dripped down, and he was just about to sink his teeth in!

Just then, a hand abruptly reached out from the side.

It pressed firmly onto the center of Hairy Person's forehead.

The downward snapping motion was frozen in place.

Hairy Person's pupils constricted sharply, his expression stunned.

The man finally sensed that something was wrong and whipped his head around, catching the scene exactly.

Jiang Ran stood before Hairy Person, glanced at his mouth, frowned slightly, and said earnestly.

"Your bad breath is a bit severe."